Photos by Spacecrafting/Rob Grosse + Britt Baumann
Creativity often thrives under constraint. When it comes to a new build, these constraints can act as a driving force which helps a home maintain a cohesive feel from room to room. For this custom residence in Central Minnesota, which took home the coveted Best in Show honor at the 2025 Midwest Design Awards, the Redstone Interiors design team repeated the mantra “no unfinished drywalls” day in and day out.
“From the beginning, the homeowners had a main design directive: no unfinished drywall,” says Britt Wille, senior interior designer for Redstone Interiors. “Their main goal was to create a richly detailed, architectural home where every wall and surface carried character, texture, and intention.”
Leaving no surface untouched is not an easy task—especially when the home spans more than 14,000 square feet. With incredible attention to detail, the Redstone Interiors team leveraged paneling, plaster, custom millwork, stone, and textured wallpapers to replace flat surfaces, giving the home a feel of supreme craftsmanship. Every surface was designed with intention. Even one of the powder rooms, for example, features walls and ceiling wrapped in hand-troweled black plaster with metallic undertones creating an alluring artisan finish and a smoky, aged effect.
The materials they chose, though, also had to live in harmony with everyday family life. Surfaces throughout the home balance beauty with practicality. Durable stones, hardworking finishes, and resilient textiles that can withstand the daily wear and tear of kids and pets, were each selected for aesthetic appeal and function.
Layered warmth was another theme that fueled the home’s interior design. A palette of natural stone, warm woods, and neutral colors blends seamlessly with the tactile finishes to create a collected, inviting atmosphere.
“It was a constant dance between detail and restraint, making sure the design never felt repetitive, but also never disconnected,” Wille explains. “Achieving that harmony across such a large footprint was a true creative challenge and ultimately one of the most rewarding parts of the project.”
Navigating the Evolving Scope
The evolving scope of the home presented another challenge for the design-build team. When the homeowners initiated the project with St. Cloud-based Werschay Homes, they planned to break ground on a different lot entirely, but when the opportunity to purchase 100-plus acres arose, the project morphed into something much larger.
Werschay Homes brought in designer Kristy Brabender from Alexander Design Group Inc. to walk the clients through multiple iterations of the home’s architectural design over the course of 12 months. “We spent a significant amount of time in the design phase to ensure every part of the house was thoroughly discussed, from room sizes, vaulted ceilings, and window placements, to design feasibility, structural components, and mechanical layouts,” says Brabender.
David Werschay, CEO of Werschay Homes, notes there was rarely a day when an idea or change didn’t need to be vetted, priced, and implemented, keeping the team on their toes. “After almost two years working on the project, it took it being completed and photographed to really understand what our team had designed and produced,” he says.
Navigating twists and turns in stride, the design-build team’s work ethic and collaboration are what made this home particularly meaningful to them.
“There was a shared commitment to craftsmanship and a genuine respect for the design intent,” Wille says, “which made the entire process feel aligned.” That talent, dedication, and passion for craft ultimately earned the team Best in Show at the 2025 Midwest Design Awards.
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